Syllabus

Here's the Syllabus for the class:

Course Number: LIS697 Pratt Institute Term: Fall 2009, M 6:30-8:50. Phone: 917-670-7940; 917-414-9678; 212-439-0736 AIM/Twitter: jacksondevious, ReadingRants Facebook: Jennifer Hubert Swan, Jackson Devious Myspace: www.myspace.com/hillias Email: swampophelia27@yahoo.com, hilliasj@earthlink.net Office Hours: By appointment. Credits: 3: Elective Prerequisites: None
 * Name: Tween Media Literacy**
 * Instructors: Jennifer Hubert Swan (author of** **//Reading Rants: A guide to books that Rock//****) & Jack Martin (co-author of** **//Serving Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Teens: A How to do it manual for Librarians//****)**

This course explores the social and psychological needs and attitudes of pre-adolescents, aged 10-13, and the media created especially for this demographic. The primary focus of this class is the media practices of "tween"-agers and the evaluation, selection and activation of print, online and non-print materials available for them. Special attention is paid to the developmental tasks of this age group with an eye towards media literacy. Discussion topics will include popular literature for tween readers, literacy and technology, the media and popular culture as it applies to this age group, non-print materials, and the use of specialized selection materials to develop collections in school and public libraries.
 * Course Description:**

• Students will develop an understanding of youth developmental tasks and learn how to apply those concepts in the library setting. • Students will become familiar with print, online and non-print materials available for "tweens" and create pathways that connect them to library offerings. • Students will become familiar with review media, and learn how to develop and apply standards when making collection decisions. • Students will explore a variety of methodologies to promote library materials and services in the eyes of pre-adolescents.
 * Course Goals:**

• Develop a working knowledge of the variety of materials available for pre-adolescents, aged 10-13. • Develop user-center strategies for promoting library materials for "tween"-agers. • Analyze, discuss, communicate and synthesize information and knowledge in a variety of formats.
 * Student Learning Outcomes:**

Class participation: 10% Blogs: 15% Talk to Tweens Assignment and Presentation: 20% Tween Marketing presentation: 20% Book Talks: 15% Topical Resources List and Presentation: 20%
 * Course Requirements and Evaluation:**

//Class Participation//—Students are expected to fully participate in class assignments, discussions, and exercises. Multiple absences from this class without prior notification to the instructor will result in a lower grade.
 * Course Assignments:**

//Blog Reflections//—must be completed throughout the course. Blogging is a way for you to articulate your thoughts and ideas about the topics we discuss in class. Each week you should post a blog reflecting on the week’s readings, activities, discussions or any thoughts you might have about teens and libraries: teens, how to best serve them, the media they immerse themselves in, reading, literacy and more. Each blog should have:

A Title A Focus—a specific book, TV show, etc Direct relation to developmental assets Good grammar and spelling (please proof your blogs before posting)

We will discuss how to set up your blogs on Day One of the class. The instructor will respond to your posts throughout the semester.

You are responsible for a total of thirteen blog posts, one post per class, throughout the semester, not counting the first and last class. Failure to post during each week will result in a lower grade. //Tween marketing presentation//—Each student will choose a library service, program or product to market to a tweenager, using some of the strategies suggested in Anastasia Goodstein’s School Library Journal article, “What Would Madison Avenue Do?” [|__http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6555544.html__] Grades will be based on originality, tween appeal, and creative use of Goodstein’s suggestions.

//Talk To Tweens Assignment and Discussion//—Identify a group of tweens that meet regularly in a public or school library. Arrange with the librarian to meet with them. (If you need help finding a library with a group of teens, please consult with the instructor.) Prior to the meeting, read over some of the Young Adult Library Services Associations published book lists, such as Best Books for Young Adults or Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers from the past 2-3 years (not older). Bring some of the titles from those lists to your meeting with the librarian and the tweens. During your meeting, ask the teens: Or, with his or her parent’s permission, interview a tween not related to you about his or her reading interests, using the same process and questions. Then submit the following: how the tween or group was selected, where and how the interview took place, a reading/media profile of the tween or group’s interests, and your reflection on their interests and the process of interviewing them. Be prepared to discuss your findings in class.
 * What they read? In print? Online?
 * How often they read?
 * What do they think reading means?
 * What do they do when they’re not reading?
 * Would they read any of the titles you brought to the discussion? Why or why not?
 * What do they think of their school or public library?

//Book Talks//—Book talks vary in length and style, and are an excellent way to market your collection to tweens. The instructors will provide booktalking examples and guidelines during one of the early classes. In total, you are responsible for (3) formal book talks throughout the course. These titles cannot come from the assigned reading. You may choose titles you plan on including on your topical resource list.

//Topical Resource List and Presentation//—Choose a topic that addresses one or more of the developmental assets. Create, compile and design an annotated resource list/bibliography for a tween audience of materials—both print and non-print—related to that topic. Be prepared to book talk at least 3-4 materials from the list in a 8-10-minute presentation. Accuracy, originality and teen appeal should be considered.


 * Course Schedule:**

An overview of the course, definition of media literacy as it pertains to tweens, discussion of who the "Tweens" are, the characteristics of this unique age group and their media wants and needs, and explanation of assignments. Read: "It's Cooler than Ever to be a Tween, but is childhood lost?" USA Today [|__http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2009-02-03-tweens-behavior_N.htm__] Prensky, Mark. Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants. From On the Horizon. MCB Literary Press. Volume 9. Number 5. October 2001. [|__http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/default.asp__] “Tweens: ten going on sixteen” from //City Journal// (this is an older article, but many of the characteristics mentioned here remain the same) [|__http://www.city-journal.org/html/8_4_a1.html__] Developmental assets: (view or download the assets for ages 8-12) [] “What Generation Z will be like at work” Penelope’s Trunk blog [|__http://blog.penelopetrunk.com/2009/07/27/what-work-will-be-like-for-generation-z/__] Twitter Account set-up Also sign up for Myspace and Facebook accounts, if you don't have them already. If you do, friend your classmates and instructors
 * 8/31: The "Tweens": Who are they and why should you care?**
 * Assignments for next week:**

Books: Read __Diary of a Wimpy Kid__ by Greg Kinney and __Blue Lipstick__ by John Grandits And: "Literacy Debate: Online, R U Really Reading?" by Motoko Rich [|__http://www.nytimes.co____m____/2008/07/27/books/27reading.html?_r=1&partner=permalink__] “When Harry Met Bella: Fan Fiction is all the Rage…” by Elizabeth Burns and Carlie Webber . [|__http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6673573.html__] Class Objective: //Formats other than prose interest and excite tweens, that their definition of reading is nontraditional. Blogs & fan fiction are reading too! Mixed media is a defining factor of their reading experience.//
 * 9/14**: **Tweens and Literacy**
 * Don’t forget to blog this week!**

Books: Read __Rapunzel’s Revenge__ by Shannon and Dean Hale and __Into the Volcano__ by Don Wood. And: “The Young and the Graphic Novel” by James Bickers [|__http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6417183.html?nid=2789__] “In a Single Bound: a short primer on comics for educators” by Drago Little [|__http://www.newhorizons.org/strategies/literacy/little.htm__] **Instructor/speaker:** Jesse Karp, Booklist Graphic novel reviewer and member of ALA 2009 Great Graphic Novels for Teens committee, will give a presentation on graphic novels especially for tweens. Class Objective: //Graphic novels are an incredibly popular format now, and provide great reading motivation for tweens. Graphic novels are often perceived as being more appropriate for older teens, so more pressure than ever is being put on publishers to publish age appropriate material for children and tweens, who are clamoring for it. Also provides a feeling of achievement, as GN’s can often be finished in one sitting.//
 * 9/21**: **Achievement motivation/Reading for pleasure**
 * Don’t forget to blog this week!**

Books: Read __Every Soul a Star__ by Wendy Mass and __The Schwa Was Here__ by Neal Shusterman And: ‘Self-concept and Self-esteem in Adolescents” by Maureen A. Manning [|__http://www.nasponline.org/families/selfconcept.pdf__]. (please note this document is a .pdf and requires Adobe Acrobat or similar software to open) “'Tweens want hip stuff, but self-esteem is the real need” by Maja Beckstrom [|__http://www.twincities.com/allheadlines/ci_7558230?nclick_check=1__] **Instructor/Speaker: Booktalking Intro**. Class Objective: //We need to define the difference between self-esteem and entitlement, recognizing that today’s parenting methods resemble peer relationships more than parent-child relationships. When does a healthy sense of self-esteem become entitlement? The selected readings demonstrate healthy self-esteem development and parents who set boundaries//**.**
 * 9/28**: **Positive Identity Development**
 * Don’t forget to blog this week!**

Books: Read __This is What I Did__ by Ann Dee Ellis and __The Graveyard Book__ by Neal Gaiman And: "Bibliophiles Not Babysitters" by Don Borchert [] **Instructor/Speaker:** A panel of LREI (Little Red School House & Elisabeth Irwin HS) middle school students will answer questions and talk about their media use. Be prepared to share and compare your results from the **Talk to Tweens/Teens assignment** due during this class. Class Objective: //In a modern age where both parents work and families have to make an effort to even sit down to dinner with each other, tweens have become more isolated from their biological families and become more dependant on peer relationships. How do the selected readings emphasize the importance of support from family? How are “family” and “neighborhood” defined? Can tweens get the same support from families they choose rather than families they are born with? Why or why not?//
 * 10/5**: **Support from Family, Neighborhood, School**
 * Talk to Tweens/Tween Interview assignment due and** **Don’t forget to blog this week!**

Books: Read __Schooled__ by Gordon Korman and __The Dragonfly Pool__ by Eve Ibbotson And: “The Tween Market: keeping our collections attractive, practical and effective” from the //Michigan Library Association Forum//: [|__http://www.mlaforum.org/volumeIII/issue1/Article2Tweens.html__] **Instructor/Speaker:** Laura Lutz, former Children’s Materials Specialist at Queens Library and currently the School & Library Marketing Manager at HarperCollins will share Tween collection development resources. Class Objective: //To do well in today’s highly competitive educational environment, tweens need to be invested in and responsible for their own learning. Goal setting, active involvement in school clubs and afterschool activities and an emphasis on recreational reading all help motivate tweens to get the most out of their educational experience. Our collections need to reflect their broad areas of interest and support their research and recreational reading needs.//
 * 10/12**: **Commitment to Learning**
 * Booktalk 1 due and** **Don’t forget to blog this week!**

Books: Read __The Lightning Thief__ by Rick Riordan __Well-Witched__ by Frances Hardinge And: “Microsoft Explores Educational Link to Video Games” Associated Press [|__http://tweentribune.com/content/microsoft-explores-educational-link-video-games__] "From Platforms to Books? I’m Game." by Rollie Welch. YALS. Volume 6. Number 2. Winter 2008. Pages 30-31. [] **Instructor/Speaker: Gaming Presentation** (David Levithan (?)) Class Objective: //Society has high expectations for tweens, parents expect excellence and there are consequences when those expectations are not met. Tweens need to learn the difference between right and wrong, a concept they learn from friends, family and books, but that can also be taught through gaming. In addition, some research shows that electronic gaming skills may help support students’ classroom skills.//
 * 10/19**: **Boundaries and Expectations**
 * Don’t forget to blog this week!**

Books: Read __Skullduggery Pleasant__ by Derek Landry and __The__ __Mysterious Benedict Society__ by Trenton Lee Stewart And: “Miley Cyrus and the secret power of tweens” by Michele Meyer [|__http://www.usaweekend.com/08_issues/080810/080810tweens-hannah-montana.html__] “What Would Madison Avenue Do?” by Anastasia Goodstein [|__http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6555544.html__] “Everything You thought you knew about marketing to teens is wrong” by Jodi Harris [|__http://blogs.imediaconnection.com/BlogDetail.aspx?BlogID=662__] “What Youth Marketers can learn from YA Publishing” by Anastasia Goodstein [|__http://www.ypulse.com/what-youth-marketers-can-learn-from-ya-publishers__] **(Please click on any link provided within the article—these links also contain relevant information that we will discuss in class)** Class Objective: //No one finds today’s tweens bigger experts than Madison Avenue. Advertisers are desperate to find out what makes teens tick in their efforts to win their allowance dollars away on books, games, music, clothes and furniture. And tweens like to read stories in which characters their age are portrayed as youthful experts who foil villainous adults or solve supernatural mysteries.//
 * 10/26**: **Empowerment; child feels valued and resource/expert at something**
 * Instructor/Speaker:** Adrienne Waintraub, Director of School and Library Marketing and Tracy Lerner, Library Marketing Manager from Random House Publishers will give a presentation on marketing books to youth.
 * Don’t forget to blog this week!**

Books: Read __After Tupac & D Foster__ by Jacqueline Woodson and __The Big Splash__ by Jack D. Ferraiolo And: “The Frugal Teenager: Ready or Not” by Jan Hoffman [|__http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/12/fashion/sundaystyles/12teen.html?pagewanted=1&sq=elisabeth%20irwin%20high%20school&st=cse&scp=10__] “Losing Its Cool at the Mall” by Eric Wilson [|__http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/23/fashion/23TEENS.html?ref=style__] Class Objective: //Teens and tweens do not develop positive values in a vacuum. Peers, parents and teachers all contribute to the development (or not!) of integrity, honesty and responsibility. While the books for this week focus on the importance of peers when it comes to the development of positive values, the articles emphasize the FISCAL responsibility that all tweens and teens have to struggle with in the current financial crisis, and the realization that relationships are worth more than material goods.//
 * 11/2**: **Development of Positive Values; integrity, honesty, responsibility**
 * Booktalk #2 due and** **Don’t forget to blog this week!**

Books: Read __The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate__ by Jacqueline Kelly and __Knucklehead__ by Jon Scieszka And: “The Overbooked Child” by David Elkins. [|__http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/200301/the-overbooked-child__] “Overscheduled?” by Amy Henry [|__http://www.teenagerstoday.com/articles/general/overscheduled-4738/__] Class Objective: //Many of today’s tweens are overbooked and stressed out with all the extracurricular activities in their lives. The readings for this week emphasize the importance of unstructured play and organic learning. As experts continue to exhort parents to let up on their tweens schedules, we may see a return to the old fashioned cry, “Go out and play!” Or not. Tweens and teens may just sit outside and text each other. Only time will tell.//
 * 11/9**: **Constructive Use of Time, participates in creative activities at home, school or church**
 * Student Marketing presentations due and** **Don’t forget to blog this week!**

Books: Read __The London Eye Mystery__ by Siobhan Dowd and __Emma-Jean Lazarus Fell Out of the Tree__ by Lauren Tarshis And: "Living and Learning with New Media: Summary of Findings from the Digital Youth Project." by Ito, Mizuko, Heather A. Horst, Matteo Bittanti, Danah Boyd, Becky Herr-Stephenson, Patricia G. Lange, C.J. Pascoe, and Laura Robinson (with Sonja Baumer, Rachel Cody, Dilan Mahendran, Katynka Martínez, Dan Perkel, Christo Sims, and Lisa Tripp.) The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Reports on Digital Media and Learning, November 2008. [] "Resources For Social Networking." Young Adult Library Services Association. [] "Social Networking has hidden dangers for teens" by Jill Tucker. [] "Breakfast Can Wait. The Day's First Stop is Online" by Brad Stone [] **Instructor/Speaker: Social Networking Sites** Class objective: //One of the consequences of online social networking may be the decline of manners and social skills among teens and tweens. Parents are sending kids to old fashioned etiquette classes to learn what they used to learn at home, and people of all ages are struggling to determine the rules of online etiquette. In addition, more children than ever are being diagnosed with autism or ausberger’s disease, which affects social skills and relationship building.//
 * 11/16**: **Social Competencies**
 * Don’t forget to blog this week!**

Books: Read __A Thousand Never Evers__ by Shana Burg, __The Remarkable & Very True Story of Lucy & Snowcap__ by H.M Bouwman and __Claudette Colvin: Twice Towards Justice__ by Philip Hoose And: "To Be A Part of the Story: The Literacy Practices of Gangsta Adolescents" by Elizabeth Birr Moje. Teachers College Record. Jun 2000.Vol.102, Iss. 3; pg. 651. __The Guy Friendly Library__ by Rollie Wlech. Libraries Unlimited, 2007. Chapter 1: The Library Staff VS. Guys and Chapter 2: Understanding Teen Males Class Objective: //Tweens and teens look to literature for representations of themselves, so it is important to make sure that equal shelf space is given to literary protagonists who reflect the diversity of the tween population we serve. Tweens also need to understand that the freedoms they enjoy today are not something to be taken for granted and that people not much older than themselves fought to bring about change.//
 * 11/23**: **Equity and Social Justice**
 * Booktalk #3 due and** **Don’t forget to blog this week!**

Books: Read __If You Reach Me__ by Rebecca Stead and __No Laughter Here__ by Rita Williams-Garcia And: "The Secret Source: Sexually Explicit Young Adult Literature as an Information Source" by Amy Pattee. YALS, Winter 2006, Pages 30-38. [|http://vnweb.hwwilsonweb.com/hww/jumpstart.jhtml?recid=0bc05f7a67b1790e928dc28f4c456a81c4e28a6587be4f588a19462d887c6d8586655bdd2ccacc05&fmt=H Pattee, A.] **Instructor/Speaker:** Rita Williams-Garcia Class Objective: //Like their older teen counterparts, tweens are beginning to experience more freedom as their parents relax boundaries and allow them to make more decisions on their own. Often they look to their peers, media and literature for clues on how to make those decisions.//
 * 11/30**: **Planning and Decision Making**
 * Don’t forget to blog this week!**

Books: Read __Scat__ by Carl Hiaasen and __Enola Holmes: the case of the Missing Marquess__ by Nancy Springer And: "Youth in Philanthropy" [] "Kohl's Kids Who Care" [] “Students, Teacher Oust Their School Board.” Associated Press [|__http://tweentribune.com/content/students-teachers-oust-their-school-board__] “He Walks 1,200 Miles for Homeless Kids” Associated Press [|__http://tweentribune.com/content/he-walks-1200-miles-homeless-kids__] Instructor/Speaker: Chris Shoemaker, Young Adult Programming Specialist at NYPL will present teen & tween inspired programming ideas. Class Objective: //Tweens are natural activists who enjoy putting their energies towards making the world a better place. Librarians and other youth professionals need to help tweens harness and channel this youthful enthusiasm into productive activities that encourage community service and giving back. By trusting and empowering tweens & teens in the library, librarians can reap the rewards of higher circulating collections and higher attended programs.//
 * 12/7**: **Community Service, Youth as Resource**
 * Don’t forget to blog this week!**

Final student presentations of topical resource lists
 * 12/14: Putting it All Together**